OSU launches sale of Beaver Classic cheese

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State University is this week launching sales of a new artisan-style cheese produced in an on-campus creamery by students in the Department of Food Science & Technology.

Beaver Classic cheese is an alpine-style product, which Oregon State students make using milk from the university’s dairy herd, according to Lisbeth Goddik, an OSU Extension specialist who works with food entrepreneurs around the world on artisan cheeses.

“The cheese is in the tradition of alpine cheeses made in Switzerland, Italy and France,” Goddik said. “It has a subtle, nutty taste with creamy, buttery and caramelized flavors.”

Goddik, Marc Bates and Bob McGorrin comprise a faculty management and production team that helped coordinate the launch of the student-made product. This is the university’s first venture into branded sales of student-made food products, said McGorrin, Jacobs-Root Professor and head of the Department of Food Science & Technology.

“This new venture will help provide opportunities for our students to obtain real-world educational experience that translates into future jobs in the industry creating dairy products,” McGorrin said. “Our students work in the creamery in all stages of the cheese’s production, from quality control to sales. They start from milk, take it through the curd process, and age the cheese for six months.”

“The tagline on the student-designed product label is ‘Savor Education,’ which reflects the ability to enjoy the end result of a successfully designed, produced and aged dairy product,” McGorrin added.

Bates is a new faculty member at OSU who is assisting with production start-up. He previously oversaw the student-run cheese manufacturing program at Washington State University.

In addition to online sales, Beaver Classic cheese will be available at OSU home football games.